You would think that a state founded by people who faced government oppression would have a healthy distrust of the Federal Government.

After being driven from their homes in the east, having their First Amendment rights stripped, and having their territory whittled away by DC cartographers in order to minimize their influence and power in government, one might imagine the state of Utah would be a little less willing to play ball with the Federal Government.

Utah just passed the 500,000 mark for issuing concealed carry permits. That’s about 25% of the population of the state.

That doesn’t mean that 1 in 5 Utahns are walking around armed, though that’d be a great start. Around 60% of those permits are for out of state residents who live in places that their state license might not grant them a great deal of reciprocity. A Utah CCW will get you reciprocity of 35 states including any that your home state CCW affords you.

But at what cost? The permit itself is relatively cheap at $46 for residents and $51 for out of state residents. First of all though you have to get a permit from your home state, and if you live in a place like NYC, Hawaii or parts of California, good luck with that.

Beyond that though, is where the moral cost comes into play.

First you HAVE to take a class. It is a 4 to 5 hour class that is called Firearm Familiarity Certification. I’m all for being familiar with firearms and training but the Supreme Court has ruled that the use of literacy tests in regards to voting are unconstitutional so why should a right that shall not be infringed be held to modern day Jim Crow laws?

Furthermore, poll taxes were made unconstitutional with the ratification of the 24th Amendment. How is paying for the right to keep and bear arms any less egregious than paying for the right to vote?

On top of that we have the requirement by Utah to submit a fingerprint card that will be passed along to the FBI. Not only violating the Fourth Amendment but also allowing the Federal Government one more egress into the violation of our privacy.

Where are all the liberals who cry that Voter ID laws are disenfranchising people? They seem oddly silent when it comes to the disenfranchisement of a more important Constitutional Right.

Oh yeah…I said it. The right to keep and bear arms trumps voting, because all it takes is one despot to decide he will only count the votes he likes before that right is a memory. That same despot can come after our guns too…but they’re a little harder to take than a ballot box.

So to recap, in order to get your Utah CCW permit you need to pay for it, pay for a class and pay for the Federal Government to fingerprint you.

Sounds less and less like a right and more like a privilege the government deems you to have.

And that is my problem with the Utah CCW Permit.

And shame on Gov. Gary Herbert of Utah for vetoing the Constitutional Carry bill earlier this year. Once again proving that gun controllers come from BOTH major parties.

UPDATE EDIT: The requirement to have a home state CCW is only applicable to those who live in states that have some form of reciprocity with the state of Utah. From the Utah Dept. of Publc Safety:

Non-resident proof of permit. If you reside in a state that recognizes the validity of the Utah CFP or has reciprocity with Utah, you must obtain a CFP or CCW from your home state and submit a copy of it with your application for a Utah permit. For a list of reciprocal states click here. Residency will be determined by your state-issued identification. If your state does not recognize the Utah permit this does not apply.

Outside of May-Issue Delaware the states that recognize Utah’s CCW are either Shall issue or Constitutional Carry states.

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